Luctor Et Emergo
by Tarma Hartley
Summary: Sequel to "In Vino Veritas." Miles comes to terms with his past at last, with hope for a brighter future after freeing himself from the prison he's been in for so long with the help of a certain mythological bird... T, PxE


_A/N: I do not own Phoenix Wright, Miles Edgeworth or Gregory Edgeworth; CAPCOM does. The plot, however, is mine. :^)_

-  
_Miles comes at last face to face with his past... and hope for a new future..._

Sequel to "In Vino Veritas." Hope you all enjoy it! :^)

**Thanks** to Midnight-hunter, my beta, for all her help and awesome critique work! Thanks bunches for your wonderful commentary!

**Extra special thanks** to my beloved husband, DezoPenguin, for all his help, advice, nagging [when necessary], support, encouragement, being my rock during the writing process so I wouldn't end up tearing my hair out in frustration and for helping me decide on a title! Love you, babe, and **MANY THANKS**!

**Thanks** also to KingHerod at y!Gallery who said the first story needed a sequel-and he was right!

Latin proverb, "Luctor Et Emergo," means "I struggle and arise." [Motto of the Dutch province Zeeland.] [Taken from .org/wiki/Latin_proverbs]

Rated T, romance/drama, Phoenix & Edgeworth  
-

_As he tumbled downward, the screams of pain and agony of the damned echoing in his ears, he thought he heard a soft voice calling out to him, a voice that promised relief from his pain, a voice that told him of the wonders of love, a voice that sounded achingly familiar, a voice that warmed him to his very marrow. He slowly turned his head to see..._

"Phoenix...!" _Miles breathed, a sob bubbling up from his lips. Seeing his lover's face only increased his struggles to escape from those steel chains of regret and pain, feeling them dig even deeper into his skin the more he tried to free himself from their confining, anaconda-like grasp._

_The smiling face of Phoenix Wright shimmered in front of him like a mirage in the desert, his blue eyes sparkling with love and mischief, that wonderful and cherished face that Miles had been unable to forget and had tried so hard to drown in the depths of blood-red wine. As Miles stared at that beloved and unforgettable face, all he wanted to do was to drown in the cool blue of his lover's eyes instead of being confined to the fiery flames that waited beneath him, licking hungrily upward._

"I'm sorry, Phoenix," _he sobbed, screaming in agony as a white-hot brand struck him on the cheek and he writhed desperately against his steel prison with renewed strength_, "I'm _sorry_ that I left you! I'm _sorry_ that I hurt you!" _He was babbling but he didn't care as three years of pain and anguish burst forth from him in a rushing tide._ "I'm _sorry_ I couldn't be the man you needed me to be! I'm _sorry_, so very, very _sorry_, that I was such a coward and ran away instead of facing my demons head on, trusting that your love would carry us through...! I've been such a fool!"

_A kaleidoscope of faces marched past his vision: friends... colleagues... his mother... his teachers... shadowy faces of childhood friends he'd left behind... people he had once known but had lost contact with years ago after he left for Germany... On and on they went, flying by him faster and faster until they flashed by him in one, continuous blur with Phoenix's face shimmering in and out for some time before finally fading into black in the background and being replaced by the late and lamented countenance of his father, Gregory Edgeworth._

_Miles felt a stab of pain in his heart that nearly undid him when faced with his father's gentle face, his laughing eyes brimming with good humor. Miles swallowed a sob as his beloved father's forgiving eyes settled on his equally beloved son; there was no anger or shame in that look, only a love that let him __know that all was forgiven. Miles gulped, his face burning with shame as tears poured down his face, crying out,_ "Father, I'm _sorry_ that I disappointed you! I'm _sorry_ that I'm not the son you would have wanted, to be proud of! I'm _sorry_ that I failed you!"

_Gregory Edgeworth smiled at his son tenderly and shook his head, his reassuring glance landing squarely on his son's tear stained face._ "You _haven't_ failed me, my dear child... I'm _very_ proud of you and the person you've become... Trust in _yourself_ and trust those who love you..." _He looked at Miles for some time, a proud, sad smile on his lips._ "I love you, Miles... Take care and be happy. _That_ is my only wish for you, my beloved son... I could ask nothing for more..." _With a last, lingering look, Gregory Edgeworth slowly faded into the background and Phoenix's face returned to the forefront._

_Phoenix smiled at Miles, leaning forward and brushing those sweet lips against his own before returning to press harder. Miles moaned underneath his mouth, tears flowing down his cheeks like rain, washing away all those wasted years of regret and pain, making him feel whole for the first time in his life._

_When at last they parted some time later, Phoenix gave him an encouraging smile as he began to slowly fade from sight. Miles begged Phoenix to stay with him but he smiled that sweet, seraphic smile and shook his head._ "I can't just yet, Miles," _he said regretfully, his face creased with sorrow, his fingers tenderly caressing Miles' face even as they began to dissolve into little sparks. He touched Miles' face tenderly but determinedly once more with swiftly dissolving fingers and leaned forward for a last, lingering kiss whispering_, "You'll need awhile to get better and to heal; it will take a little time but, when you're ready, come and find me... I'll be waiting for you, I promise."

_Phoenix's blue eyes shimmered with tears as he vanished, leaving Miles alone once more with an aching heart as he plummeted closer and closer to the fiery mouth that was opened wide to receive him..._

**PHOENIX!**" _Miles screamed, twisting desperately in the air, his eyes widening in horror as he saw the gaping, fiery maw beneath him..._ and suddenly came to a crashing halt as he came into contact with something hard and unyielding, seeing stars dance behind his eyelids after the collision with the coffee table top when he fell off the couch, wincing at the stab of pain that raced through his throbbing head.

His heart was pounding in his chest and he was breathing heavily as he came to, his shaking left hand clutching the the right arm of the couch, his knuckles white.

_It was only a dream... it was only a dream... it was only a dream... Thank God, it was _only _a bad dream...! _

He sat for a few moments in silence, taking a deep breath as he waited for the pain to pass. His eyes wandered over to the left hand corner of the room and fell on the digital clock that sat on the coffee table, beside a floor lamp. It read 5:00 A.M.  
Miles groaned, pressing his hand against the lump he could feel beginning to make its presence known, cursing his ineptitude as he slowly leaned back against the couch, his eyes tightly shut and wishing fervently that the mariachi band playing in his head would stop.

_How long have I been out? What am I doing on the floor and..._-He lifted his hand gingerly and touched the throbbing lump carefully, hissing in pain as he did so- _why does my head hurt like the blue blazes?_

He closed his eyes once again when he could no longer bear the spinning of the room and waited for the nausea he could feel rising in him to ebb. When he opened his eyes again a few moments later, he found that he was drenched in a cold sweat; he could feel the sting of it as it ran into his eyes and he brushed it away with an impatient gesture, feeling as though he had, quite literally, escaped from hell... a hell of his own making.

_God, I feel awful! I might not be dead but I'm definitely wishing I was right at the present._ He winced again as another painful spasm raced through him. _Serves me right, though... I don't think I've ever done something as foolish as drinking myself into insensibility over the past three years._ He felt his hand clench into a fist. _But not anymore; I'm done with that part of my life for good. I'm through with running away..._

He looked at the goblet with the von Karma crest that lay beside him for a moment before he picked it up and hurled it away from him as hard as he could, watching it as it sailed into the kitchen and hearing it smash to pieces as it hit the opposite wall, fragments of crystal flying everywhere. His heart felt light for the first time in eighteen years as he heard it shatter, feeling satisfaction and triumph flow through him as he was released, at last, from the prison that he had been in for so long.

He sighed as he sat back, closing his eyes again, a smile flickering at the edges of his mouth. There was, indeed, much truth in the Latin saying, "In vino veritas," but the one truth that Miles Edgeworth could not bring himself to face before was the indisputable fact that he loved Phoenix Wright with all of his heart and couldn't imagine life without him.

_I don't know why it's taken me so long to figure this out_, he mused with a slight hint of embarrassment, feeling his cheeks get hot and chuckling ruefully to himself before he winced at the tremendous hangover he was experiencing. _I suppose it's always been there ever since we were children._ A smile flickered at the edges of his mouth as he recalled a couple of prominent childhood memories where he and Phoenix were, as their parents said with proud smiles, joined at the hip. _We were always together in those days before our lives changed and we went our separate ways._

Phoenix had saved him from himself all those years ago and he couldn't repress a smile when he thought of him, his heart swelling even as it ached. Of all people, Wright loved him to distraction, perhaps without the slightest hope that Miles would love him back but that didn't seem to matter to him. For some reason Miles couldn't really fathom, Phoenix loved him anyway, unworthy though he thought himself to be to receive, or even deserve, Phoenix's love.

Miles sighed once again as he slowly picked himself up off the floor, groaning in pain as his head throbbed. He glanced briefly at the shards of crystal littering the kitchen floor, the von Karma crest cracked in two amidst the wreckage before he turned and slowly headed for the bathroom to clean up.

He would have time later to think of what had happened that night and how he had literally found truth in the bottom of a bottle. He marveled anew at how Phoenix had saved him again, even if he wasn't aware of it at this point and reflected on the wonders of love for Phoenix's steadfast love had saved him, once again, from hell.

**In vino veritas: In wine, truth.**

Miles Edgeworth would have many a day in the months to come to reflect on just _how_ true that was.


End file.
